


my (space)ship is sailing

by lady-serendipity (JenZz)



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Space, Fluff and Crack, M/M, Mother Hen Kyungsoo, Soulmates, Spaceships, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Wingman Chanyeol, chansoo are baek's parents, mild panic attack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-17
Updated: 2017-11-17
Packaged: 2019-02-02 20:27:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12733743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JenZz/pseuds/lady-serendipity
Summary: When Yixing says he'll pick Baekhyun up for their date, Baekhyun expects a car, not a space ship.





	my (space)ship is sailing

**Author's Note:**

> Mostly fluff where Baekhyun panics a lot and Yixing is a really cute alien but an alien nonetheless. Prompter, I hope you enjoy!! This became a lot longer than expected haha, get ready for some space fluff! I did want to make it realistic so it's not quite the Baek going along with the flow, but he's pretty gung-ho for an alien landing in his driveway. Thank you to [Aurin](http://archiveofourown.org/users/IAmNotGoodatthisnamingthing/) and Jess for beta'ing, you guys are the best in the universe.

************

As a consultant, Baekhyun can afford the nice life. Meaning that he’s got a two-story house to himself in the swankier part of town. It’s painted a charming shade of yellow, one he had picked out with Kyungsoo because Kyungsoo doesn’t trust his solo decisions. His second-story master bedroom overlooks the street, and he likes being able to discreetly look outside and watch the passersby.

However, he’s never seen anything like… _this_.

Shakily, Baekhyun reaches for his cell and presses the first button. 

A groggy voice picks up, and greets him, “If you’re not dying right now I will personally kill you myself. After I wake up later.”

“You can kill me later, Soo, assuming I’m not dreaming right now.”

A gasp in the background that is definitely not Kyungsoo, another very annoyed grunt, and a whispered apology occurs before a different voice whisper-yells, “It’s the date, right?! The hot guy is picking you up!” Chanyeol, Baekhyun’s other best friend and long-time boyfriend of Kyungsoo. Baekhyun winces. He'd called Kyungsoo for fast advice, because Chanyeol will ramble on about nothing and he doesn’t need that right now.

“At six fucking AM in the morning? You’ve got to be kidding me, it’s Saturday!”

“No, baby, it’s ten AM right now, a perfect time for brunch.”

Baekhyun pinches the bridge of his nose and prays for patience. “I need to interrupt your lover’s spat with the very important news that _my date is outside in a spaceship_.”

Because what's outside his house cannot be described as anything else. It's almost cartoonish in its roundness, a gleaming glass bubble around what must be the pilot and co-pilot seats. Its body gleams silver in the sunrise. The pilot seat - visible from Baekhyun’s vantage, is occupied and the driver is pulling a lot of complicated levers before the ship gently parks down right in front of Baekhyun’s porch.

The other end of the line has gone dangerously quiet. Then Kyungsoo demands, “Show me. Now.”

Mutely, Baekhyun switches the call to a video and shows them the sight outside his window. “What in the world - or out of it - did you sign me up for, Chanyeol?”

************

It had all started, as it usually did, when Chanyeol excitedly texted him in a string of nearly indecipherable abbreviations and emojis about the latest guy he thought Baekhyun should go out with. Baekhyun had been laying in bed vegging out, as he usually did after another long work trip, and reluctantly picked up the phone.

yeolyeol: you caNNOT BELIEVE  
yeolyeol: grocery shopping and hot men ;) ;)  
yeolyeol: you’ll like this one foSHO  
yeolyeol: #thatsrightyourtype  
yeolyeol: ;))))  
baekkkkkk: you literally say this every time, yeol  
baekkkkkk: you are 0/1000 rn  
yeolyeol: well >:O  
yeolyeol: forgeT THE OTHERS >:O >:O  
yeolyeol: here a pic you’ll get it  
yeolyeol: [sent a picture]

Baekhyun had almost dropped his phone off the side of the bed, and luckily recovered it with his fast reflexes. He stared at the picture. Unlike the men Chanyeol usually tried to set him up with, he actually liked this guy at first sight.

He blames the dimple.

baekkkkkk: gdi yeol you know I’m weak for dimples  
baekkkkkk: but not that weak  
baekkkkkk: it’s a no  
yeolyeol: whyyyyyyyyy noooooooooot  
baekkkkkk: just, no. who even goes out with random grocery store dudes anyway  
yeolyeol: lameeeeeee

Baekhyun had thought it would end at just that. How many times could his friend run into the same stranger at the grocery store, anyway?

He regretted his naivete after Chanyeol sent him about twenty new photos, all at different times, with several captions:

“He bowed to me today! Crazy! :O”  
“So polite and handsome ;)”  
“He says hi ;))))”  
“You’d like him”  
“He’s kinda weird but it’s cute?”  
“Definitely weird but you’ll like him :o”  
“Can I give him your number”  
“Pls Baek number?”  
“NUMBER?”

When Chanyeol sent three photos at the same time of and with the cute stranger, Baekhyun finally agreed to exchange phone numbers with the guy. Baekhyun has no idea why Chanyeol talks to random people in the grocery store so often, but he must really like the guy to talk to him more than once. 

He asked the guy if they could call first before meeting. From experience, you could tell if a guy was a definite no by the way they talked on the phone. You couldn’t really distinguish the okay and the good ones, but that was what a first date was for.

The phone was picked up on the first ring. “Hi, is this Baekhyun?”

“Hi,” Baekhyun responded, a bit charmed but taken aback by the fast greeting. Had the other been waiting by the phone? “You probably know this already, but I’m Baekhyun. I don’t think my dolt of a friend actually told me your name….” He shuts up, realizing that he’s babbling. _Shut up, don’t do what you usually do_.

The stranger let out a light peal of laughter, and Baekhyun instantly liked that. “You can call me Yixing.”

“Yixing,” Baekhyun said, rolling around the syllables in his mouth. “Is that Chinese?”

“Yes, so excuse me if I say some strange things. English is difficult to pick up, so many different ways of saying things!” 

Baekhyun smiled, remembering his own language studies in college. “I know, Chinese is really difficult for me so I get that English is hard for you.”

“I am glad you understand. So, what do you do?” 

They got the small talk going. Baekhyun found out that Yixing was a freelance artist, loved all animals, and had similarly been shocked at Chanyeol’s friendliness. 

“I could not believe that the same guy kept wanting to talk to me. It must have been destiny.” Baekhyun chalked it up to the artistic tendency for mystical talk, and shrugged.

“Or just Chanyeol’s annoyingly persistent.” He looked at the time and jumped. “Oh goodness, we’ve been talking for almost an hour!”

“Do you have to go?” The question was hesitant, and a little wistful. Baekhyun found himself feeling the same, and sighed. Chanyeol was going to get his wish after all. He was right, Baekhyun really liked Yixing already, finding it so easy to talk to him. Sometimes his wording was odd, but that was probably the language barrier.

“Yes, but let’s go on a date. You free Saturday morning?”

A gasp from the other end. “I-I think so, yes. Can I pick you up?”

“How sweet of you,” Baekhyun had teased. “I’ll text you my address.”

“Great. It is a date, then!”

Though he’d never admit it to Chanyeol, Baekhyun’s very much looking forward to it.

************

And now in the present, Baekhyun’s very much freaking out.

The stranger has exited the spaceship, fishbowl helmet still on. As Baekhyun watches, the stranger ambles over to the side facing his house and leans against the ship. He takes off the helmet and Baekhyun is utterly struck by his beauty. The photos Chanyeol had secretly taken had most certainly _not_ done him justice.

But that doesn’t make him freak out less. He whimpers into the phone, hoping Kyungsoo can respond. Kyungsoo recovers first, as always, and says, “Ok. Calm down, and stay inside. He’ll probably leave after a while.”

Baekhyun brings the phone back to his face, after a moment of tamping down his panic enough to talk, and responds, “That… sounds reasonable.”

“What, no Baekhyun!” Chanyeol says in the background of the phone. Baekhyun hears a hissed “What do you mean?” before the phone is probably handed over to Chanyeol. “Maybe it’s a spaceship replica. He did say he was an artist.”

“Yeol, that looks way too real to be a replica. This is fucking proof that _aliens_ exist and you’re telling me to go on a date with one? Oh god,” Baekhyun says, sitting on the floor. “I can’t even call the police on him, they wouldn’t know what to do.”

“I don’t know, Baekhyun,” Chanyeol returns, sounding upset. “I wish you’d just give him a chance though. Didn’t you like him on the phone?”

“What the fuck Yeol. Where are your survival instincts? Just because I had an amazi—nice conversation with him on the phone doesn’t mean I want to go possibly die in outer space.” He glances outside, and groans. A cute dimpled stranger is now standing in his driveway, leaning against the spaceship. Of _course_ Yixing is his type.

Kyungsoo has apparently wrenched the phone back when he says, “Thank god you’re talking sense, Baekhyun. I was worried you might actually go. That’d be stupid even for you.”

 _Wait, excuse me?_ “Wow,” Baekhyun says lightly, getting a little annoyed. “Rude.”

“Sorry, I just meant that you’re a bit too adventurous sometimes. Glad you’re settling down now.”

 _Oh God, am I getting_ boring _like Kyungsoo?_ He looks out the window again, rebellion forming in his mind against his better judgment. “No.”

“Hmm?”

“Chanyeol’s right. I should give it a shot. Talk to you later, Soo,” Baekhyun replies, and shuts the phone on Kyungsoo’s indignant reply. He picks up the slim fitting black undershirt, colorful button-down, and black jeans he’d prepared for the date and puts them on. He’d been going for the not too dressed up, not too casual look. 

When he’s dressed, he runs to the window and opens it up, waving and shouting, “Be right there!”

Yixing looks up, startled to see him half-hanging out of the window. A slow smile steals over his full lips before he shyly waves back at Baekhyun.

Quickly, Baekhyun retreats back into his room, shutting his window so he can grin dumbly to himself. _I have to admit, that was pretty cute_. 

As he’s heading down the stairs, his ~~conscience~~ inner Kyungsoo voice says, _What the FUCK are you getting yourself into this time Byun Baekhyun?_

Baekhyun shakes his head. _I’m living a little_ , he stubbornly tells that voice, and sighs. He was going to enjoy this date, spaceship and Kyungsoo be damned. If he’s being realistic, that’s pretty cool right? _I wonder if it’s actually real? It’d be a lot of effort to drag that around…._

Leaving the house and locking the door behind him, Baekhyun turns and flashes a hesitant smile at Yixing. The other gets up and approaches a suddenly shy, halfway panicky Baekhyun. “Hello,” he calls out. “I hope you are Baekhyun.”

Slowly, Baekhyun nods. “And you sound like Yixing,” he says hesitantly as Yixing walks to his front doorstep. 

“That is me. The artist of freelancing,” Yixing jokes, and then tilts his head. “You are beautiful, Byun Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun’s breath catches in his throat and he ducks his head. “U-um, thank you?” He’s used to compliments but not so quickly in the game, and never before so earnestly. 

“You are very welcome. Are you ready to depart?” Yixing asks, taking Baekhyun’s hand.

“As ready as I ever am, I guess.” He’s still quashing his inner Kyungsoo voice, which is now warning him about the dangers of getting into strange cars with strange men. _I need to live a little_ , he reminds himself, and looks up into Yixing’s warm brown eyes, crinkled in a smile at him. Hesitantly, he smiles back. 

“Well, let us be off,” Yixing says and guides him to the spaceship. 

Baekhyun lets himself be led, truly overwhelmed by the spaceship when he is finally standing next to it. He gapes as Yixing presses a button on the side of the spaceship, unsure what’s going on and vaguely distressed by the smooth opening of the glass chamber. But Baekhyun does know he enjoys the cool feeling of Yixing’s hand around his, reassuring and confident. He wants to trust Yixing, so he lets the other guide him into the spaceship and buckle him in. It is quite real looking, with real seat belts and all. Maybe they would sit in it for a bit before actually getting going? Yixing probably has a car around the corner he'd used to lug this into place. Right? 

It isn’t until Yixing starts the engine and the lights start flickering that Baekhyun realizes, once and for all, that this really is a spaceship. He yelps, grabbing onto a random handle on his right as the ship lurches up. Yixing looks over at him, worried. “Sorry, it has been through a lot of light-years... I do all the maintenance myself but it is not as smooth as it used to be.”

Baekhyun is already shaking his head. “No, I’m just… haha, what am I saying… I’m not used to a spaceship.” It’s really starting to set in, the worry and panic about what he’s gotten himself into. 

Before he can panic too much, Yixing’s hand pats Baekhyun’s leg in a soothing way. “Thank you for trusting me, Baekhyun. Not many would. But I had a feeling my bondmate would.”

“Bondmate?” Baekhyun whispers the question, not sure what he’s hoping for but it calls to something within him. That scares him, because it’s all going so fast.

“No, that is not quite a first date thing. Please forget I said that. Are you ready to go?” Yixing flips a few more switches and the spaceship smoothly rises upwards.

Baekhyun takes a deep breath. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

At that, the spaceship shoots up, up, up, and Baekhyun is surprised that he doesn’t feel any of the uncomfortable pressure he’s used to from planes. _Must be advanced technology or something?_ He almost feels as if… well, he is having an otherworldly experience.

Soon enough they’re past the Earth’s atmosphere and in outer space. Baekhyun gasps at the view. “I’ve always seen it in pictures but damn it is really gorgeous from out here,” he says quietly, admiringly. _Fuck, I’m in space. How do I get out of this?_ He shakes his head, thinking, _I’m fully committed now, no use in thinking that now_.

“It is quite a lovely planet, if a bit in the middle of nowhere.”

“So,” Baekhyun says, “where are we going?” He studies Yixing’s profile, eyes dragging over sharp chin, high cheekbones, soft eyes, as the other presses numbers into a screen projected onto the glass overhead. _I would’ve been okay with dinner and a movie, but this is pretty cool if hella scary._

“I wanted to take you to my favorite planet for a walk among the starflies, and then out to coffee. How does that sound?”

Baekhyun giggles, and notices that Yixing seems entranced by the sound. “It sounds strangely normal. Let’s do it.”

As if he can’t help himself, Yixing reaches out a hand and brushes Baekhyun’s cheek. “As you command, gorgeous.”

Baekhyun squeaks at the compliment, surprised again. He should stop being surprised; he knows by now that Yixing really likes to give compliments. Yixing lets out a breathless laugh before going back to his console and confidently finishing up… whatever he’s doing. Baekhyun realizes he should look outside, and tears his eyes from his date. He gasps.

Earth is long gone, as well as any planet or exoplanet he’d ever learned about in school. They are in unfamiliar territory, flying pasts spheres of all colors. He swears he saw one that was aflame like Mars, only purple in color. 

It was better to look at Yixing, he decides. Less overwhelming. And so, he keeps his eyes on Yixing from then on, watching with curiosity as he navigates. 

Yixing glances back at him once in awhile, reddens, and quickly shifts his gaze back. “We’re almost there,” he says softly. “What’s on your mind?”

“You,” Baekhyun replies immediately, and chuckles at how much redder Yixing gets. 

“Cheeky,” Yixing says, hearing the mischief in Baekhyun’s laughter. “You are missing all the good views by looking at me.”

“No I’m not,” he says, but obeys the hidden command in Yixing’s voice. 

The scenery around them has changed to that of another world - they were slowly descending on a completely green landscape. The sun was blue here, throwing a strange light on an alien atmosphere. 

And everything was alight with tiny, dancing pinpricks of soft yellow. A fish bowl-like helmet is placed over his head the moment the glass cover of the spaceship is lifted. “It should be okay for you to breathe here,” Yixing explains, “but I would not want to take any chances.”

“I can get out though?” Baekhyun asks, marveling at the world. He probably shouldn’t, to be safe, but he’d already kind of screwed himself over with safe the moment the spaceship left Earth. 

Yixing simply nods, “Yes, it will be fine. Welcome to El Dorado,” as he opens the spaceship door. He hops out and goes to Baekhyun’s side of the ship. “Trust me?” he says, winking. Baekhyun is incredibly charmed by the utter cheese in the Disney reference.

“Sure,” Baekhyun laughs, and takes his hand. “If you’re not from Earth, how do you know Aladdin?”

“I studied hard,” he responds earnestly, “and did my best to learn your planet’s ecology and about humans.” Touched, Baekhyun squeezes Yixing’s hand. Something glints in Yixing’s expression, indicating that he’s not as soft as Baekhyun is making him out to be. It takes his breath, seeing how much he affects Yixing. Thank goodness it’s mutual.

“You did a pretty good job, but...” Baekhyun says, looking away at the gorgeous sight. “Honestly, I would’ve been fine with a coffee date or something. N-not that this isn’t great. I’m just feeling a little... overwhelmed.” The reality is starting to crash in, his dreamlike wonder is being replaced with true panic that he is on a goddamn other world with a person he barely knows.

Yixing takes Baekhyun’s hand and tugs him close, until Baekhyun is looking at Yixing again. The hard glint has been replaced with worry, and Baekhyun tries his best to steady his breath. “I’m sorry, I did not mean to overwhelm you, Baekhyun. I… I can take you back.”

Baekhyun takes a shuddering breath and nods. “I’d… I’d like that.”

The ride back is quick albeit silent as Baekhyun tries to get himself under control. When his little suburban neighborhood comes back into sight, he finally relaxes and takes a deep breath. “Y-Yixing.”

“Yes?” They’re touching down. Baekhyun has long taken off his helmet and is grateful to take a deep breath of familiar air when the glass chamber releases.

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” he says, turning to look at him, “I… I want to go on another date with you. I want to know more. Just not tonight.”

“Of course,” Yixing breathes, almost crumpling with relief. “Goodness, I will give you all the time in the world. I don’t know what I would do if you said no tonight. Though I can be very persi—”

Baekhyun leans in and smacks a kiss on Yixing’s lips. He pulls back before Yixing can process what had just happened, and hops out. “Next weekend, let’s date my way!” Baekhyun says brightly before running to his house and shutting the door. He leans on the door and slides down, letting out a large sigh. His phone starts buzzing incessantly, so he pulls it out.

And calls Kyungsoo. “Fuck, Soo, isn’t 50 voicemails and 150 missed texts a little—.”

“God, fuck thank God you’re okay. You stopped answering your phone yesterday and I was going to file a missing persons report—”

“Wait, yesterday?” Baekhyun interrupts, and pulls the phone away from his head to check. It’s Sunday. “Wow, what the fuck?”

“I should be asking that,” hisses Kyungsoo. “I was going to kill Park Chanyeol for setting you up with a kidnapper and his fucking spaceship.” Okay, maybe Kyungsoo hadn’t overreacting that much, with the possibility of intergalactic kidnapping on his mind.

“Speaking of, where is—”

“Baekhyun!” a voice interrupts their phone conversation and Baekhyun yelps, dropping his phone. “Sorry, it’s just me,” Chanyeol arises from the shadows of Baekhyun’s living room. “Kyungsoo told me to get my ass over here and wait for you or else he wouldn’t let me home.”

“Shit, Yeol, give a guy a warning next time.” Baekhyun crouches in the doorway to pick up his phone and puts it on speaker. Squatting, he says, “You too, Soo, couldn’t you have given me a heads up?”

“No,” Kyungsoo’s voice crackles over the phone speaker, “I was busy being relieved to find out you’re alive. Tell me more about it later, I’m going to bed. Yeol you can come home now.” The sudden resounding beep indicates that Kyungsoo has hung up.

“Yay, I can go home now!” Chanyeol crows behind him. Baekhyun straightens and looks at Chanyeol, really looks at Chanyeol and bursts into tears. “Oh, fuck,” Chanyeol says and rushes to envelop Baekhyun into a hug, “what’s wrong?”

“It’s not even wrong, it’s just,” Baekhyun sobs, “he’s just so sweet and that terrifies me because he’s so… out of this world.” He can’t even pinpoint when or why he’d started freaking out but he’s just so relieved to see Chanyeol, so familiar.

“Aw, Baek. It’s good that he’s sweet, but yeah that spaceship thing isn’t really something insignificant.”

Baekhyun hiccups and says, “He took me to another world and it was wonderful. I asked him on a second date.” He’s calming down now, but burrows deeper into Chanyeol’s arms. 

“You sure? You don’t have to if he’s freaked you out this much,” Chanyeol rumbles, rubbing soothing circles into Baekhyun’s back.

He’s already shaking his head. “It’s not him, it’s me. I think I’m just feeling… excited-scared-overwhelmed-happy.”

“Uh… that’s a lot of feelings. Do you want me to stay over?”

Baekhyun lets go of Chanyeol and shakes his head again. “No, better not piss off Kyungsoo more. Thanks for waiting for me.” He winks at Chanyeol. “And thanks for being a wingman.”

Chanyeol still looks worried but a little relieved at being told he can leave. “Okay, bye Baek. Call if you need anything!” he says as he puts on his shoes and runs out the front door. 

Sighing, Baekhyun kicks off his shoes and heads upstairs to collapse into bed. “Let’s see how it goes,” he mumbles into his pillow, and falls quickly into a deep sleep.

************

The next weekend, Yixing again parks his spaceship in Baekhyun’s backyard, but this time Baekhyun drives them in his very normal car to a very normal Starbucks. He notices that Yixing is looking around with interest at the car dash, the windows, the seat, and everything. “Everything okay?” Baekhyun laughs and sees him blush out of the corner of his eye.

“Yes, there is just… less ways of controlling this than my ship. It seems to serve its purpose well,” Yixing says, and places a hand on Baekhyun’s leg. “Thank you for asking me on a second date.”

Baekhyun forces himself to focus on the road and not on the very nice way Yixing’s hand is rubbing his leg. “Uh. Of course,” he grits out, mentally reminding himself that it is probably out of friendliness and not of any ulterior motive. But when he glances over at Yixing, it’s a smirk instead of an innocent smile. _Whelp. Not innocent._ It’s his turn to flush and look back at the road. “Here we are,” he says, turning into the Starbucks. If he parks a little wonky, so what.

He slams the door a little harder than anticipated, and takes a deep breath to compose himself. If this was the game this time, he could play too. Baekhyun locks eyes with Yixing across the car, and deliberately licks his lips. The thrill that runs through him when Yixing’s eyes are drawn to the movement makes him smirk.

However the heat of the atmosphere calms down when they enter the cafe. Baekhyun’s grateful, because he’d like to maintain propriety at least in a public place.

While Baekhyun orders a caramel macchiato with extra whipped cream, Yixing orders a cup of Earl Grey tea. Scandalized, Baekhyun says, “If I’d known you were a tea person, I’d have taken you somewhere else!”

Sheepishly, Yixing replies, “You never asked. It is okay, I am happy as long as I am with you.”

Baekhyun melts a little at this, and he notices out of the corner of his eye that the barista has also clutched at her heart. “Okay. I’ll take you to a tea place next time for sure.” 

Yixing chuckles. “It is a deal.” Their drinks arrive, for “Brandon.” Baekhyun takes both drinks and quickly strides over to a table by the window. It’s one of his favorite haunts, affording a view of a moderately busy street in a cozy alcove. The seats are also comfortable, plush but sturdy. Yixing cocks his head at the drink. “I thought your name was Baekhyun?”

“It is,” Baekhyun says, grinning, “but the baristas tend to struggle with my name. So I remove the struggle for them.” 

“I see.” A silence settles in as they both sip their drinks, and Baekhyun tries to casually look out the window. Worry begins to settle in as his insecurities come back. Sure, they’d had a good phone conversation, all that small talk was out of the way, and the first date had gone pretty well considering the… well, spaceship. But the second date was always when the other guy would lose interest in Baekhyun, never staying long enough to really care.

He turns back to Yixing and finds him staring unabashedly at him, lips slightly parted. Baekhyun’s ears go red and he mutters, “What?” Immediately he regrets it, wishing he hadn’t said anything.

But it’s okay, Yixing smiles and says, “It is just that you are beautiful. It takes me by surprise every time, and makes me think about how lucky I am to have found you.”

Baekhyun hides behind his macchiato, using the sweetness to calm himself down. “You’re a flatterer,” he pouts, “that’s bad for me.”

Putting his cup down, Yixing leans closer to Baekhyun. “But you do not really mean that.”

“...no, I don’t,” Baekhyun admits. He’s always liked compliments, praise, searching for them while feeling insecure when getting them. “I just don’t know what to say.”

“Tell me about your family, and I will share about mine.” _Now there’s something I can talk about._

Hesitantly, Baekhyun begins to tell Yixing about his family. How they live far away, how his brother shares the same smile as he does. The whole time Yixing is nodding earnestly, laughing at the right cues and solemnly ahhing when appropriate. He trails off, and then says, “What about you?”

Yixing lights up when he talks about his family, which Baekhyun finds adorable. His voice is warm with kindness when he talks of his parents and their love being inspiring, how it inspired him to set out on a journey to find his own love. Baekhyun had a fleeting suspicion it might be him, but dismissed it. That would be silly, to jump to conclusions. 

They continue to sit and talk, leaning closer and closer to each other until their drinks sit forgotten on the windowsill as they talk in hushed voices. Elbows on the table, bodies angled towards each other. Yixing is sweet and engaging, shining with passion when he talks about the hobbies he’s picked up while on his travels, and Baekhyun hopes he is the same when he talks about making music with Chanyeol in their free time, or eating Kyungsoo’s cooking.

 _I’m so in trouble_ , he thinks, because he’s ensnared in Yixing’s eyes and story. _But I don’t mind_. He’s never been so comfortable with another person on the second date. He doesn’t want to read too much into it though.

While they’re conversing about politics of all things, the barista comes up to their table and awkwardly clears her throat. “Sorry boys, but we’re closing up. I have to ask you to leave,” she says sheepishly as they both startle and look at her. “But we’re all rooting for you two!” she adds in a stage whisper and scampers away.

All Baekhyun can do is laugh in response, glancing at Yixing. He’s so happy, he hasn’t felt this happy and in love in ages. The happiness is almost physical, bubbling within him like an endless fountain. “Guess we have to go.” It’s surprisingly dark outside already, the sun having set whilst they talked.

Yixing nods. “I believe we must,” he replies, smiling. “Since she asked so nicely.” He stands and offers a hand to Baekhyun.

Shaking his head at these old-fashioned antics but also charmed, Baekhyun takes his hand. 

The drive home is spent in more comfortable banter.

Baekhyun only remembers the spaceship when they’re finally standing in front of it. They’re holding hands in front of it, in Baekhyun’s backyard. His sad attempt at a garden is a little flattened, but it isn’t like he’d been working that hard on it.

He pulls Yixing closer to him, and touches their foreheads. “Thank you for today,” he murmurs, lips forming a smile automatically. He plays with Yixing’s hands in his own, threads their fingers together. “For going on a regular Earth date with me.”

“It is my pleasure, Baekhyun.” Baekhyun’s sure Yixing is also smiling brilliantly, but he doesn’t want to pull away to look at it, even for the dimple. Instead, he angles his head closer to press a kiss onto Yixing’s plush mouth.

As they kiss, Yixing wraps his arms around Baekhyun’s neck, bringing them even closer. Baekhyun wants more, wants so badly, but he wants to take it slow at the same time. Without delving further into Yixing’s lips, he makes himself pull back and kiss Yixing’s nose, eyes, forehead.

“I think I quite like this kissing,” Yixing says, voice a little husky from what must be desire. Baekhyun laughs and gasps when Yixing pulls him even closer. He claims Baekhyun’s lips again, deepening the kiss and taking the rest of his breath away. 

Baekhyun wants him to stay, but he doesn’t want to be easy, either. He wants to be sure. He’s pretty sure at this point that Yixing isn’t with him to get into his pants, but better be safe.

It’s not that he’s been burned that bad before, it’s just that with years Baekhyun has learned to be cautious. He sighs at himself and reluctantly steps out of Yixing’s arms. “Can we do a double date for our third one?” Baekhyun asks, hopeful.

Yixing nods, excited. “With your friend from the grocery store?” he asks, and laughs, “The one you complained about today?”

“The very same. I complain about him because I love him.” Baekhyun wrinkles his nose, and Yixing kisses it.

“I would love to, Baekhyun. Good night.” 

Baekhyun kisses Yixing on the cheek. “Good night.” He steps back, watching until Yixing’s spaceship flies up and out, idly wondering where he goes every time.

************

He gets Chanyeol and Kyungsoo to agree to a billiards double date night. As his honorary mother, Kyungsoo is along to judge Yixing. Chanyeol’s just excited to play some pool.

As last time, Yixing lands his spaceship in Baekhyun’s backyard. This time they walk, the billiards place a lot closer than the cafe for some odd reason. “Just so you're warned, Kyungsoo is pretty wary of you.”

Yixing looks up from the shrub he'd been looking at. “Okay. Why?”

“Well, he tends to overreact a bit and freaked out that you had a spaceship and that our first date went a little… long.” Baekhyun reaches out for Yixing’s hand and takes it. Yixing’s fingers weave through his and he feels unreasonably happy at the small gesture. “I think he'll warm up to you, though.”

He squeezes Baekhyun’s hand. “I hope so. I think the tall one - Chanyeol? I think he mentioned having a scary small boyfriend.”

Baekhyun chuckles. Leave it to Chanyeol to overshare to an almost complete stranger. “Yeah that's Chanyeol for you. For your own safety don't mention either adjective in front of Kyungsoo.”

The other nods solemnly. “I shall make sure not to.”

The billiards place is situated in a nondescript building, one of many white buildings in a small shopping center in town. The management had recently changed and the decor inside is now very… neon, to say the least. It’s enough to have Kyungsoo squinting in the entrance - or maybe that’s because he'd forgotten his glasses again. 

Next to him, Yixing smiles but waits for Baekhyun to introduce him. Baekhyun notices Kyungsoo looking at their joined hands and lets go to hug Chanyeol and then Kyungsoo. “Good to see you two,” he declares, “and here's my date. Yixing, this is Chanyeol from the grocery store and his husband, Kyungsoo.” 

“Nice to meet you,” Yixing says, bowing as he shakes both of their hands. “Please go easy on me.”

Chanyeol laughs and kisses the top of Kyungsoo's head. “I'm pretty easygoing, and Kyungsoo can be once he warms up to you.”

Kyungsoo punches Chanyeol in the stomach and goes to rent equipment. Unfazed, Chanyeol whispers, “I've been building up my abs so it doesn't hurt as much!”

Yixing whispers back, “Okay?” and shoots a confused glance at Baekhyun. Baekhyun chuckles and takes Yixing’s hand again, leading him to their usual table. 

“Don't worry, that's pretty standard for them.”

The date goes incredibly well, especially considering Kyungsoo’s talent for chasing away Baekhyun’s potential boyfriends. They have to coach Yixing on how to actually play pool, but he's a fast learner. Soon even Chanyeol, their resident expert, has to acknowledge Yixing’s innate skill. Yixing also manages to charm Kyungsoo despite, well, Kyungsoo. 

At the end of the date, as Chanyeol excitedly talks to Yixing about something music-related, Kyungsoo draws Baekhyun aside. “Okay.”

“Okay what?” Baekhyun is confused and cocks his head. 

“Okay you can keep him. He seems nice enough,” Kyungsoo grumbles. 

Baekhyun beams and pulls in an even more disgruntled Kyungsoo for a hug. “Thanks, that actually means a lot to me,” he whispers. And it does, Kyungsoo's good opinion is usually so hard to get and Baekhyun really values it. 

“Yeah, yeah, now let go of me before Chanyeol—" but it's too late when Chanyeol joins their hug. 

“Me too! Group hug!!” Chanyeol says as he envelops both of them. He dances away before Kyungsoo can elbow him. “Anyway yeah. It was a pleasure meeting you, Yixing. Treat our Baekhyunnie well, he's our only son.” At this, he wipes away a fake tear and continues, “They grow up so fast.”

Yixing’s obviously puzzled with his wide eyes and parted lips so Baekhyun says, “They not really my parents. It's just a joke because they dote on me like they really are my parents. My real parents live pretty far away, so,” he shrugs, “and they worry enough for a third person.”

Kyungsoo punches Baekhyun on the shoulder, who yelps. “Ungrateful son. I hope I see you again, Yixing. Good night.”

They wave goodbye in front of the billiards place. Baekhyun and Yixing hold hands on the way home, swinging it a little as if they're schoolchildren. It's a comfortable silence. 

“That was very fun,” Yixing says quietly as they go around Baekhyun’s house to the garden where Yixing’s parked. 

“It definitely was, and went so much better than expected,” Baekhyun agrees. “They don’t usually like my dates as much, and aren’t afraid to tell me so! Silly them, worrying so much, but it makes me feel loved. And that means the fact that they like you says a lot.” 

He’s worrying a bit that he’s babbling when Yixing doesn’t answer right away. Instead, Yixing pulls Baekhyun in for a kiss. Baekhyun’s eyes flutter closed as he kisses back. When he finally draws back, Baekhyun still in his arms, all Baekhyun can think to say is, “Well that was nice. What prompted that?”

“You being so irresistible all the time,” Yixing says, seriously and making Baekhyun’s heart thump faster. “I love listening to you talk, it makes me so happy. Baekhyun, can I stay?”

 _Stay_. Oh, he so badly wants that. And plus Chanyeol and Kyungsoo had all but given their blessing. He sees the hope in Yixing’s eyes, and is immediately decided. “Of course,” Baekhyun says.

He has a _very_ good night, one of the best romps he’s had in years if he’s honest, and wakes up feeling happy and cuddled in Yixing’s arms. “Good morning,” Baekhyun says groggily, and snuggles closer to him.

“Morning. Do you have to leave? I would like you to stay.”

Baekhyun groans and rolls them both over so he’s straddling Yixing. He grumpily squints at the clock and yelps. “Yes, actually, I should go right now.” He jumps off of the bed and tries to fix his hair as best he can. “You can… stay, if you’d like.” He’s pretty sure Yixing doesn’t have a job.

“Okay,” Yixing says, and promptly falls back asleep. Baekhyun looks at him fondly before throwing on some clothes and running out.

In fact, Yixing stays the whole week, and suddenly Baekhyun has someone to watch TV with, someone to read books to, and someone to cuddle with at night. He loves every moment of it.

When Saturday rolls around again, Yixing asks Baekhyun on a fourth date. “I think we’re dat _ing_ by now,” Baekhyun says, and Yixing’s expression grows worried. “But yes, of course,” he amends. “One can still go on dates when dating. It’s just, you don’t have to ask. Well, you… never mind.”

Yixing now just looks confused, but shrugs and says, “Okay, Baekhyunnie,” ruffling his hair. He really likes that nickname, and leans into the touch. “Can I take you to your moon?”

Baekhyun pauses, feeling a little worried that he’d react like he did the first time Yixing took him to space. But he can feel that he already trusts Yixing even more than he’d instinctively felt, and that this time it would be okay. He nods, and Yixing sighs in relief. 

The trip is short, and Yixing puts the fishbowl helmet on Baekhyun’s head again. Baekhyun takes the hand Yixing offers and floats down to the moon’s surface. “Whoa.” It’s an odd feeling, feeling lighter and bouncier, and the Earth is as gorgeous as all the astronauts have said it is.

“Your planet is breath-taking, Baekhyunnie. It rivals mine in beauty.”

“Is this the time you share your backstory with me?” Baekhyun jokes, feeling genuinely curious. They’d started to walk, taking small skips rather than normal steps. Yixing nods, serious, and Baekhyun sobers up. “I’d love to listen, Yixing.”

Yixing takes Baekhyun’s hand and exhales. “I hail from a planet of shapeshifters called Travelers. We are born with the shape of the species that our bondmates are. We keep our genetic diversity that way.”

Baekhyun cocks his head as they jump over a large divot in the moon. “So, bondmates are like, people meant for your kind? You needed to find a human?”

“Yes!” Yixing nods vigorously. “Exactly that. I was going to despair because no one had ever found what I was supposed to be before. I wandered so far, and finally I wished on Shooting Star for help.” 

They pause to readjust their path to avoid a particularly large hole. “That's funny,” Baekhyun says, “We wish on shooting stars too.”

“What? Oh, you mean, roving meteors. Not those, this is much more powerful. The Shooting Star is the center of life, it births stars and shoots them to their destined places. It knows all that was, is, and will be. It is also a great romantic.

“It shows you a direction to your beloved, if you complete a quest for it. I had to clean its surface for forty human-years, which it said was not a problem because you were not in existence yet. We live a very long time. Oh, it also told me about humans!”

Baekhyun laughs at this. “It sounds pretty awesome.”

Yixing nods and continues, “The reason is that no one had discovered humans, just as you humans had never discovered other life in the universe. It was a miracle I found your tiny solar system. And an even bigger miracle I found you. Baekhyun, I would like to live a lifetime with you on Earth.”

Baekhyun for some reason isn’t been expecting this to be the way Yixing had been going with his logic. “Really? You would?”

“Yes,” Yixing says, squeezing Baekhyun’s hand. “I would first take you home to meet my parents, but I would quite like to live with you. I think you will be unbearably sad to leave your home and after all my traveling… I would like to stay in one place.”

“After all you’ve seen, you’d like to be on Earth?” Baekhyun isn’t ready to be relieved yet, and he’s a little worried about how quickly he’s accepting all of this. 

But it makes so much sense. It makes sense why Baekhyun hadn’t panicked _that_ much when going to another planet, why Yixing feels so right, why Baekhyun wants him so much. If it was meant to be, Baekhyun is okay to be this much… in love already.

“Of course. It has you, after all.” Baekhyun shoves lightly at Yixing for the cheesiness, and then drags them back to the spaceship. He doesn’t have to go very far, as it looks like they’ve walked a large circle. As soon as the protective bubble is back in place, he throws off his helmet and climbs into Yixing’s lap, kissing him.

“You cheeseball!” he says, hearing Yixing’s heart thump against his. He kinda wants to stay in these arms forever. “...okay.”

“Okay to…?” Yixing already has his hands on Baekhyun’s ass, but he’s still asking permission. Baekhyun rolls his eyes. _After a week of fucking you think he’d get the message._

He wraps his arms around Yixing’s neck, holding Yixing tight, and says, “Everything.” _Because anything with you_ , he thinks, giddy with happiness, _is going to be just wonderful._

“Great, you up for trying some spaceship sex?” Yixing says, tone half-serious, half-joking.

Baekhyun groans. “You’re going to kill me with how perfect you are for me, bondmate.”

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are always appreciated <3 <3! And you can always yell at me on Tumblr [here](http://lady-serendipity.tumblr.com) and/or Twitter [here](https://twitter.com/ladyyserendipit) <3!
> 
> OH MY GOD CHECK OUT THIS MOODBOARD: https://twitter.com/exonautfest/status/934182203503788032 thank you mods <3


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